3 yo with an embedded tick head in her arm

[mamasue]

My 3 yo has a wood tick head in her arm. Her tissue is so soft and springy that I have not been able to dig it out. Should I be worried. I have only heard of one person in this area with Lyme (and she could have gotten it on vacation), and no one with Rocky Mt. Spot Fev. I have been trying to weigh which is more likely to cause infection: digging around in her arm or just leaving the head alone. Do any of you have any experience with tick heads left in the skin?

Thanks muchly!

[Cheryl in SD]

If I couldn't get it out on my own, I would take her in to get it done tomorrow. I don't like the idea of that staying in there even if you haven't heard of problem cases.

[Windy_jem]

Take her to the doctor! He can freeze the area and get the head out with less pain then you digging around in there.
Let us know how it goes... good luck.

[MELOC]

there should be no worry of lyme disease from a wood tick. she could get an infection. i have had several embedded in me. they always seem to be in deep enough to hit tough and very sensitive tissue. i had to have one taken out of my navel...of all places. it was just too freaky to dig in there.

when i had the doc remove the one in the navel, he used a device that plucked it right out. it only took him a second or three.

[Itilley]

Have the doc take it out. You never know.

RenieB

[MoonRiver]

Lyme disease can be a very serious disease. I think I read that it takes 24 hours for the tick to transmit Lyme so it is important to get the tick off as soon as possible. Here is a state by state list of Lyme disease -
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme...sesbyState.htm

Be on the lookout for a rash (often a bulls-eye rash) which can occur from a few days to a few weeks after the bite. A bulls-eye rash is a definite indicator of Lyme disease. If not treated early, serious complications can occur.

[mamasue]

Thank you all!!

I have put Bentonite Clay on there to hopefully draw it out tonight, and have given her Echinacea tea to help prevent infection. I will see how things go in the morn.

Thanks again!!

[Old Vet]

Go and see the DR. Lime disease is not all that can happen. I had one on the back of my calf and i got Drowsy all the time and starred to run a fever and almost lost the use of my leg. All that I had to do is to take some antibiotics and it cured up. Not all antibiotics will work but the DR found the right one and I took 10 days worth and it cleared up. Look at it and see if it has a red spot about the size of a eraser with a brown dot in the center. If it does then take the child to the DR. just as soon as he is open. The antibiotic is cheep and it works. He can bring it up on the computer by searching tick bites and it will give him the name of the Antibiotic.

[redwall]

never done it to a 3 year old but for older kids put a big drop of vasiline and it will un hook in a few hours then flick it and kill it

[RLStewart]

My vet told me to get them off the dogs just put a big gob of liquid soap on them and it will suffocate them and they will let loose. I haven't had to try it but he swears it works like a charm everytime. Doesn't seem like it could hurt.

[6e]

Did you take the tick off or did you try to pull it off and lose the head? We often have those little tiny ticks lose their head. Eventually, they come off on their own. Wood ticks aren't the ones that carry Lyme disease.

We don't worry about it too much. If we rushed the kids to the doctor every time we lost a tick head, we'd been in there over half a dozen times this summer. LOL

[mtfarmchick]

Just because no one has gotten Lyme's in your area doesn't mean it isn't there. There isn't a case of Lyme's reported in Montana until 2006. I had a tick about 6 or 7 years ago. It was embedded pretty well in my back. I went to the Dr. after my knees started swelling up and I was really tired. She didn't even test for Lyme's. She gave me Doxycycline(I think) and did a core biopsy (they take a tiny corkscrew looking thing and bore out the bite site). The reason she didn't bother testing is because the test has a high rate of false negatives. The rash that someone mentioned doesn't necessarily occur at the site. Like I said, my tick was embedded in my back, but the rash I got was on my inner arm by my elbow. The sooner you can get your child treated the better. It is better to be safe than sorry.

[mtfarmchick]

I forgot to mention that wood ticks do in fact transmit Lyme's.
http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/...ymedisease.htm

[Valiantone]

I echo the sentiments here. If you can't get ALL of it out on your own, see the doc.

If you can get it out keep an eye out for the halo/bullseye around the bite area. Lyme disease can be a mother, once it sets in.

And a "get well quick" to your daughter!!

Chris

[neal68]

i know this is a little late but check out the tick twister at www.ticktwister.com we have a pair of them and they really work.

[beaglebiz]

blech...ticks are bad this year, I founbd one on my puppy's neck. she is too young for the lyme vaccination. And its stinking cold out...

[bluetick]

Those tick twister gizmos are great!

My vet told me if I ever find a tick on a dog after a good freeze, it is most likely a deer tick. He said they can be found year round.

I had a tick on my back and panicked when my doctor's office was closed for lunch. The vet's office took me right in and not only removed it, but examined it under a microscope to identify it as a deer tick. Seems I wasn't the first person to request a tick removal and ID! In fact, they told me that human doctors often can't tell the difference among the varieties of ticks, and they have been asked by some to identify ticks for them.

Some ticks (deer ticks, I think) in NY state have been found to carry babesiosis, an organism that causes a malaria-like illness. I hate ticks!

[zookeeper16]

Any updates? Did you see a doctor?

[just_sawing]

Go to the Co-op and buy a large srynige. Cut the tip back where you can get a kitchen match in it. Apply baby oil wiat 5 minutes then place the syrnige on the arm and pull the plunger. The head will pop out.

[wyld thang]

I hope it goes alright with your kid!!!! Be glad you're not in Africa, my sister saw a blistery looking thing under my toddler niece's fingernail--she started poking around and it broke open and teeny little spiders came out! We have noooooooo idea!!!